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On August 16, 2003, at about 4 a.m. local time, a
NASA/JPL satellite image of fires in Northwestern North America August 21, 2003
(1800x1500px) {{DEFAULTSORT:Okanagan Mountain Park Fire, 2003 2003 08 16 2003 wildfires 2003 in British Columbia Natural disasters in British Columbia History of the Okanagan 2003 disasters in Canada
On August 16, 2003, at about 4 a.m. local time, a wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...
started via lightning strike near Rattlesnake Island Rattlesnake Island refers, variously, to the following places:
United States
* Rattlesnake Island (Clear Lake), in Lake County, California
* A previous name for Terminal Island, in Los Angeles County, California
* Rattlesnake Island (New Hampshire ...
in Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park
Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park is a provincial park within the Okanagan-Similkameen Regional District of British Columbia, Canada, focused on the mountain of the same name and located on the east side of Okanagan Lake, opposite Peachland and ...
, British Columbia, Canada. The wildfire was fuelled by a constant wind and the driest summer on record up to that time. Within a few days it grew into a firestorm
A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires and wildfires. Although the term has been used ...
.
The fire spread northward and eastward, initially threatening a small number of lakeshore homes, but quickly became an interface zone fire and forced the evacuation of 27,000 residents, consuming 239 homes. The final size of the firestorm was over 250 square kilometres (). Most of the trees in Okanagan Mountain Park burned, and the park was closed.
60 fire departments, 1,400 armed forces troops and 1,000 forest fire fighters took part in controlling the fire, but were largely incapable of stopping the disaster.
There were also a number of aircraft used in an attempt to extinguish the fire, including three private Canadair CL-215s, four Government of Alberta owned Canadair CL-215s, four private Lockheed L188 Electra air tankers and at least one Martin Mars
The Martin JRM Mars is a large, four-engined cargo transport flying boat designed and built by the Martin Company for the United States Navy during World War II. It was the largest Allied flying boat to enter production, although only seven ...
air tanker
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...
. Amateur radio operators assisted during the emergency.
That total cost was estimated at $33.8 million.
Links to news articles
See also
*Operation Peregrine Operation PEREGRINE was a domestic Canada, Canadian military operation that took place between August 3 and September 16, 2003.
In early August 2003, British Columbia was overwhelmed by over 800 separate forest fires. Provincial fire services were ...
* List of fires in Canada
This is a list of fires in Canada. Numbers for buildings only include those destroyed, and area is given in hectares and is converted to acres.
List
See also
* List of Canadian disasters by death toll
* List of fires in British Columbia ...
* List of disasters in Canada
This list of disasters in Canada includes major disasters (arranged by date), either man-made or natural, that occurred on Canadian soil.
List
Pre-1597
1597–1867
1867–1916
1917–1966
1970–2016
2017–present
See also
* Li ...
References
External links
* Photographs of housing sites a few weeks after the fire, in September and October, 2003. Dr. Denis Wall Copyright. * – Firewatch page set up for local residents during the fire (has many photos)NASA/JPL satellite image of fires in Northwestern North America August 21, 2003
(1800x1500px) {{DEFAULTSORT:Okanagan Mountain Park Fire, 2003 2003 08 16 2003 wildfires 2003 in British Columbia Natural disasters in British Columbia History of the Okanagan 2003 disasters in Canada